Meth Storm (2017) User Reviews

Brutally honest documentary that is at times hard to watch

[paul-allaer · 7/10 · 15 December 2017]

"Meth Storm" (2017 release; 95 min.) is a documentary about the devastating effects of cheap and potent meth coming in from Mexico to overwhelm rural America. As the movie opens, we are reminded that meth production in the US has all but shut down, and that Mexican cartels were all too happy to fill in the gap. We then are in the midst of a high-speed car chase, as Arkansas DEA agents are on the heels of a drug dealer. Then we get to know a family in Van Buren County, AR, led by Veronica, now 43 and a meth addict. We witness her shooting up and it's not long before we get to know her two sons who are also addicts. Finally, we are introduced to Johnny, a local DEA guy who is part of Operation ICE Storm, a large effort to combat drug dealers. At this point we're 10 min, into the documentary.

Couple of comments: this is the latest from documentarians Brent and Craig Renaud, who have tackled similar issues before ("Dope Sick Love", "Little Rock High: 50 Years Later"). The documentary picks up in 2014, when Operation ICE Storm develops, and covers the next 18-24 months. What we witness is hard to grasp and at times even hard to watch. Entire communities (mostly consisting of what one might call "white trash") seem engulfed in the meth storm. At one point Veronica's 26 yr. old son Teddy is released from yet another drug related stint in jail. They hug, drive home and immediately proceed to shooting up together, YES, right after his release! It blows the mind, and it made me cringe on more than one occasion. When Johnny (the DEA guy) reviews the list of people who are arrested at one point during Operation ICE Storm, he knows most of them personally, as he laments that he cannot stop the meth wave. At one point we get to know Teddy's 2 young daughters, I'm guessing 6 or 7 years old, and you can't help but feel very sorry for them. I just shook my head...

"Meth Storm" premiered recently as part of HBO's documentary series, and I caught it the other day at HBO on Demand. I wasn't really sure what to expect, but as this played out, I couldn't help but feel strangely removed from all this. I mean, is this really part of America? I don't pretend to know how to solve this issue (or, say, the opioid crisis that is so widespread), and I fear it will only gets worse before it gets better. Meanwhile, "Meth Storm" is a brutally honest documentary that is at times hard to watch but a eye-opener on so many levels.

Shockingly real

[Mike854 · 7/10 · 27 March 2019]

As a former paramedic, unfortunately this is exactly how meth affects not just the user, but their families and the community,

Hard to Believe This is America

[msgtmelton · 8/10 · 17 December 2017]

Hard hitting documentary exposing a lifestyle some of us are lucky enough to have avoided. The timeline of the documentary would have been easier to follow had dates been shown when scenes changed. It appear to have been filmed over at least a year but could have been more and some of the characters were never identified or explained. I am guessing the man who dies was Veronica's second husband and I had to watch it again to link the sickly man at the end was the same man shown looking much better earlier in the film. There is also a blond girl that shot up with Danial that was never identified and another girl, this time a young brunette, who was not identified. The documentary would be significantly better with just some dates and relationships of the characters were identified on screen. The documentary portrays the hopelessness of these people who live on welfare and food stamps and spend their time selling meth brought up from Mexico by the cartels to support their own habit. It also shows the DEA fighting a loosing battle to stop it.

Not the best documentary, HOWEVER...

[jmdarden-25102 · 6/10 · 4 April 2019]

This is not a well- produced documentary but is an updated version of the docs 10 yrs ago when meth was being home-cooked in backyard meth labs, extremely dangerous in so many ways. Of course the cartels have come up w a more refined, more potent and cheaper product - simple supply and demand. However why the one reviewer below sits on his/her high horse and simply judges the people (yes, they are PEOPLE, HUMAN BEINGS) caught in the devastating spiral of drug addiction with all its destructive ripple effects, seeing them a losers who "got what they deserved" is such a pitiful commentary on someone who knows nothing about the powerful grip of addiction. Why waste time to "review" when all that person does is criticize these people. It shows complete ignorance about addiction. Get off your high horse and have some compassion- or shut the hell up.

Heartbreaking tale on how poverty is managed by addiction

[malmevik77 · 7/10 · 30 January 2024]

Meth Storm

The film is a documentary on crystal meth addicts and dealers in Arkansas, during a period of time that the DEA was actively pursuing a way of halting production, or halting import, of the dangerous drug. It was called Operation Ice Storm named for the street slang for crystal meth.

It is heartbreaking to see the depths that these people will go just to make ends meet. The people they show being arrested, or using, are all in poverty, and they use the proceeds of their illegal sales to get by.

Addicts also beget addicts as some of the adult children of addicts also tried it and are now addicts. These adult children also have young children, and I worry for their safety. The documentary does not hold back in showing these real life situations. Some people have their faces blurred, but the majority do not.

This documentary is not for everyone. I can completely understand if this is a subject that one does not want to know about, but it exists. If you, or a loved one, is struggling with addiction, there is help, but it may not be enough.

A Powerful Film about the Power of Addiction and the Futility of the Drug War

[JustCuriosity · 10/10 · 10 March 2018]

METH STORM was very well-received in its world premiere at Austin'S SXSW Film Festival. This is a powerful film about what addiction to this awful drug can do a family and a community - in this case, Faulkner County, Arkansas. The film makers spent a long time in the community and got to know some of the individuals well which allowed them to get remarkable and up close footage including film of people shooting up on meth. (This takes up well-beyond the romanticized and action-packed version of Meth seen on Breaking Bad.) While much of the blame for their bad choices can be placed on the individuals, it can also be blamed on the failures of government to provide these families jobs, educational opportunity, health care, and any sort of accessible drug treatment. The society has failed these families whose only real opportunity is the black market drug trade. The only governmental response is in law enforcement, but that seems to be utter and complete failure as well. The close-up view of the crisis is overwhelming. The mother tries to get her kids to quit drugs while failing to confront her own long-term addiction. The squalid conditions in which they live are heart-breaking. The ruined lives and the young kids that seem to have little more to look forward to are simply devastating to observe. The DEA agent attempts to arrest small-time dealers in hopes of breaking the drug ring and catching the Mexican source without seeming to realize that they are chasing shadows. They don't seem to realize that they can never win by prosecuting the demand side of the equation. This powerful film certainly raises more questions that it answers (much like the Michael Douglas film Traffic a generation ago). It has been picked up by HBO Films which should provide it with a well-deserved wider audience.

Turtle

[coldnosesforever · 5/10 · 29 April 2019]

In this documentary, there's a turtle in a tank. The water was filthy and they require a lot more care than this poor guy was getting. Someone needs to get that turtle out of that nasty environment. It's not right to film it and walk away.

A Heart-Breaking Look At Meth

[lisargarza · 9/10 · 30 November 2017]

This gritty doc takes an unflinching view of the Meth addiction in central Arkansas. The opening scene of a violent car chase between an obvious addict and law enforcement officials is a good metaphor for the remainder of the movie: this is a horrific train wreck and try as you might, it's hard to look away.

There are no winners here, no happy ending. But the film accurately portrays the problem from all sides. Users seem powerless to stop themselves or keep future generations from falling victim to the same evils. And drug enforcement agents have the best of intentions but are battling a ruthless enemy with limitless resources.

I was confused by who's who in this film and could have used a few more titles along the way (e.g. "Teddy's third wife, Maria" or "2 months later...") And some of the editing erred on the slow side. But those are small potatoes next to the unfettered look inside the heart of a heart-breaking problem.

"I'm not trying to be rude, nanny, but tell Dad he needs to make better choices"

[Hallelujah289 · 9/10 · 28 May 2019]

"I'm not trying to be rude, nanny, but tell Dad he needs to make better choices"

"Meth Storm" is a disarmingly sweet documentary about a meth using family in Arkansas. You wouldn't think a documentary of this topic could be sweet, but it is. The family this documentary centers around is a mother, a step father and her three sons (?) and two daughters. The mother and her son's are meth addicts who have each served repeated times in jail. Most are without jobs, but somehow still find drugs and love to share with each other. Drugs and love is what passes between these family members, and it is both heartbreaking and redeeming to see. Heartbreaking to see the mother seem to teach addiction, but also redeeming for her to try to maintain a support system when that return to jail takes place. Her family is both of the more dysfunctional and compassionate one could hope to find. It's easy to judge her incapabilities but the documentary teaches you to try to be more respectful.

The people busting these families are also surprisingly respectful which seems rare to see. One phrase I remember is a police man (and mayor of a small town) hoping to be there "to help, not to hurt." I liked what he had to say to the people he busted.

"Meth Storm" is not exploitive of this meth addicted family, although it does show many kinds of nitty gritty which speaks of a rare kind of trust between filmmaker and subject more than anything. For this quality I commend this documentary, although for most people it will be entirely not what they expect. If you want to spend an hour of your life judging some meth addicted "white trash" people, unfortunately "Meth Storm" is not for you. It's not until the end of the film that the mother's rape becomes even hinted at. There's no glorification of the unfortunate here. This is a wise and hopeful documentary with a lot of humanity.

Criticisms because the title doesn't necessarily reflect what the documentary is really about. This is more of a portrait of a family and one police officer rather than a documentary about meth on any kind of grand scale. There is not really any violence either as might be expected from the nature of the word "storm." "Meth Storm" is decidedly mellow, and I liked the change of pace.

Amazing

[atomikartsflorida · 8/10 · 10 June 2019]

I've been sober for 33 years, and so the crack/meth/opiate epidemics have grown outside my radar. This film is shocking, utterly shocking. If this is happening throughout the heartland, how do we even have a population? You hear about it and read about how large an issue it is, but this film really brings it home. We are in serious trouble. These people are addicted to drugs, alcohol, tobacco, sugar - they spend all day every day putting various types of poisons in their bodies. It's all they do - and you wonder why our national life expectancy is going down. Diabetes, overdose, heart disease, cancers due to tobacco use - and then add suicide to that. Wow what a gripping film.

the people in flyover country have no hope

[lee_eisenberg · 8/10 · 17 January 2020]

"Meth Storm" focuses on the meth epidemic in the rural United States. Basically, these people have no prospects: there are no jobs, and so they'll continue to live in absolute squalor and do meth.

Notice how, when the crack epidemic affected African-Americans, they got called addicts, but now that the opioid epidemic has hit white people, it gets treated as an epidemic?

A Heartbreaking Portrait of Poverty and Addiction in the South

[cassadair · 8/10 · 2 August 2021]

A gut wrenching view into America's small towns, and the failures of the war on drugs. As someone who grew up in a southern small town, there were definitely times when the scenes this documentary shows hit far too close to home.

The film is split between a mother's desperate attempt to hold her family together while her and her adult sons struggle with methamphetamine addiction, and a parallel story of the local law enforcement and DEA's failure to make any headway against the titular storm of drugs flooding the region. The timeline of events in the film are a but muddled at times, especially concerning the repeated arrests of one of the sons, and the swapping perspective between the two stories. That being said, it remains comprehensible.

It paints an uncompromising view of how those in intense poverty are victims of systemic trauma, and how that, in addition to interpersonal injustices, can force them to try and find peace in substances. The weight of this burden is then passed down through generations, expanding the cycle.

All in all, a difficult but insightful watch that humanizes the impossible fight the subjects find themselves in.